New York, New York
by devilsspy
Summary: Glee Season 4: The Faberry Show. Just a little drabble I imagined up for how season 4 could go, totally plausible.


**So there was a post going around tumblr about how the Glee writers have no notes about their characters/charcter development/anything on their walls compared to other shows and we all laughed and agreed that the fandom could do a better job and I imagined how Season 4 might start and IT WAS ONLY MEANT TO BE LIKE A PARAGRAPH OR SOMETHING BUT THEN IT TURNED INTO A FIC D: So yeah I tried to make it as canon fueled as possible and I have no real name for it so here it is.**

New York, New York

Rachel Berry took a step towards the roaring applause, bright smile on her face and waving to her adoring fans. This was where she belonged, on the stage, in front of an audience, being _appreciated_. Alas she had to stop some time though, so she bowed one last time and stepped behind the falling curtain.

The knock on her dressing room door didn't surprise her, it was the same knock that she heard every night after she performed. "Come in!" she called and when Quinn walked in (yes, WALKED in, she would never get tired of seeing that) she ran over to her friend arms opened wide.

"You were amazing!" Quinn told her as she grabbed the smaller girl for a tight hug, carefully manoeuvring the bouquet of roses she had in her hand out of harm's way.

"You say that every night," said Rachel.

Reluctantly letting go, Quinn took a step back and smiled at the girl in front of her, "That's because it's true."

"Well you should at least stop bringing me these bouquets - even though I love them - it must be costing you a fortune to get them every night." Rachel took the roses and laid them in front of her vanity mirror.

"Rachel, the cost isn't important when it comes to you," Quinn said sadly, knowing that Rachel would never quite know the full extent of her meaning.

Rachel turned back to Quinn, bright smile as always and said, "Well thank you anyway, I appreciate them Quinn, I really do. Just like I appreciate your friendship."

This time the smile Quinn gave her wasn't sad, because even if friendship was all it was between them, that was better than nothing at all.

"Now!" Rachel said suddenly. "Dinner?"

"Dinner," Quinn agreed and grabbed Rachel's coat for her so that they could head to that neat little Italian place just down the way they went to every time Quinn visited.

Meanwhile...

Finn Hudson will never come back from the army, never visit New York so that Rachel can pursue her dreams like she's always planned and if he ever did this would happen:

Rachel went to answer the door, she wasn't expecting Quinn round for another hour so she was a little surprised when she had heard the knock, especially since the blonde normally just let herself in. When Rachel opened the door however the tall blonde with hazel eyes was most definitely NOT what she found.

"FINN?"

"Hi Rach," the tall boy, who was now much more muscular and could pass for a man, smiled his dopey smile as he was the girl that he loved for the first time in so long. Rachel just stood staring at Finn speechless, not being able to comprehend that he was actually there, standing in front of her. After a little while Finn asked, "Can I come in?"

Regaining her ability to speak Rachel responded, "Yes-yes of course," and stood aside for Finn to pass through into her apartment. Not being able to suppress it any longer Rachel blurted out a little more harshly than intended, "What are you doing here?"

Finn's face fell slightly with the tone, he knew there would be some anger towards him for how he left things with Rachel but he had never once stopped loving the girl. "I came to see you, my unit got a week off so I thought I might see how you were."

"You could have called first," Rachel wasn't sure why she was so upset, in truth she had already come to terms with the break up had surprised herself with how easily she got over it considering how much in love with him she had believed herself to be.

Finn looked at the ground and started to regret the impromptu visit. Rachel was right, he should have called first, what did he think he was doing just showing up here? He guessed a part of him had hoped that Rachel still loved him back the way he loved her, that she would have been ecstatic when she opened the door to find him standing there in his uniform. "I'm sorry," he said. "You're right, I'll-I'll go."

As he started to head for the door Rachel grabbed his arm gently and said, "No wait."

Finn looked down into Rachel's eyes and misinterpreting her look leaned in towards her to kiss her. Rachel backed away from him immediately, putting as much space between them as possible. "Finn what are you doing!" She exclaimed.

Finn looked even more confused than usual as he stuttered, "I-I'm sorry. I, I just thought-"

"Well you thought wrong," Rachel cut him off. "Finn you need to understand, I loved you, I really did-"

"I love you too-"

"No Finn let me finish," Rachel took a deep breath. "I loved you Finn, past tense, and when you broke up with me it broke my heart."

"Rachel I did it for you-"

"Finn please!" Rachel knew that this must be hard to hear but she needed to say it and Finn wasn't helping, shouting at him seemed to get him to finally shut up though. "Thank you. As I was saying, it broke my heart and at first I didn't know how I was going to get over it, move on, start my life in New York without you. But then once I started going to classes and time passed I realised that this is where I was meant to be. And then I thought a lot more about whether us getting married so young would have actually been a good idea. Finn we were 18, we had our whole lives ahead of us, we still do! All we know is high school and each other and having a break from that, spending time away from you, I figured out that that's not what I want anymore, I'm sorry Finn."

Finn didn't know what to say, it was like the wind had been knocked out of him. "Finn? What are you thinking?" Rachel asked, concerned about the look on his face that resembled the one he got when he sat through US History class.

"I, I don't know," he replied. "Is this really how you feel?"

"Yes Finn, yes it is."

"Well, as long as you're happy then," Finn smiled weakly. "That's all I've ever wanted for you Rachel." Because even if Finn made bad decisions sometimes, hurt people without meaning to, wasn't the smartest guy in the world, there was one good thing he was capable of doing and that was letting Rachel go, letting her live her life.

Rachel smiled back at Finn, "Thank you Finn, it really means a lot to me that you understand this and can accept it and I want you to know that I forgive you for breaking up with me. I'm going to give you a hug now, for old times' sake?"

Finn could never be mad at Rachel and to hear that she forgave him made him feel a little better about the fact that she didn't want to be with him. So he put his arms around her for a hug.

Quinn got back to the apartment from Santana's a little earlier than expected but she had the spare key Rachel gave her for when she came down so unlocked the door and stepped into the room saying, "Hey Rachel, are you..."

She trailed off when she saw Rachel in the middle of the room, holding onto Finn Hudson.

"Quinn wait!" Rachel called after the blonde that had left the apartment as fast as she could and was rushing down the stairs. She managed to get all the way to the front of the building before Rachel finally got her to stop.

Rachel grabbed her Quinn's arm and said, "Would you stop! Quinn what's wrong?"

"What's wrong?' Quinn exclaimed. "Since when was Finn Freaking Hudson back in your life and how come you didn't tell me?"

"Quinn you don't understand I-"

"Do you remember how much of a wreck you were after he broke up with you? I was the one who was there to pick up the pieces!"

"Quinn please-"

"No Rachel, I can't do this, I can't see you live your life with him. Once upon a time I thought that if you were with him that having your friendship was enough and that I could deal with that but I can't Rachel, I just can't do it."

Rachel stilled, "What are you saying Quinn? I don't understand."

How could she not understand? Didn't she see the way Quinn looked at her? The way she'd do _anything_ for Rachel, anything Rachel asked of her? But that all meant nothing if Rachel was with Finn and so Quinn didn't see what she had left to lose anymore. "Rachel," she had tears in her eyes but she thought what the heck and gave a short laugh before adding, "I love you."

Rachel can very much be a diva sometimes, okay well a lot of the time. But it was no exaggeration on her part if someone asked her and she told them that after Quinn said that she felt like her heart had literally stopped. _I love you._ Quinn Fabray had just told her that she loved her.

"Is this a joke?" Surely this was just a joke, someone was waiting behind a bush somewhere with a camera filming everything. Rachel even looked around to make sure.

Quinn wiped away her tears, careful not to smudge her makeup and said sadly, "No Rachel, this isn't a joke. You really think after all we've been through I would do something like that?"

_All we had been through_.

Rachel started to have flashbacks, junior year Quinn telling her that she didn't belong with Finn or in Lima, the duet they sang when Quinn was willing to _give Rachel her nose_, even though they weren't 'friends'. Senior year, Quinn telling her she couldn't marry Finn, and then asking her if Finn was the only one she sang that song too, _Without You_, she hadn't given the way Quinn asked a second thought before but could she have meant... And then at prom, when she somehow got voted Prom Queen and Quinn stood for the first time in front of everyone and say 'Take My Breath Away' to the room, it was only to the room right? Even though she had been staring straight at Rachel? Rachel was the first person Quinn told when she got into Yale, Rachel was the one that convinced Quinn to comeback to Glee club, to not tell Figgins about Shelby and Puck, _Rachel was the one that always seemed to get through to Quinn when no one else could._

"Do you not understand what you mean to me?"

Hearing her own words, yes they were the exact words Rachel had used to Quinn, echoed back to her is what pulled Rachel from her head. She had been staring into nothing as her mind relived the past but now they were staring into the hazel orbs that had started to tear up again and Rachel thought that the fear she saw in them might break her heart.

"Quinn?" Both girls turned to see Finn coming out of the apartment building holding his jacket. "Um, hi."

"I should go," Quinn said as she started to turn, intent on making a bolt for it yet again. She had told Rachel and likely ended their friendship but that was that. It was almost like a weight had been lifted, the burden of carrying that truth inside of her for so long gone but now she had to live with the consequences and it would be too much for her if she stayed here with Rachel _and Finn._

"No Quinn, stay," Rachel told her and without her eyes leaving Quinn's Rachel added, "Finn, I think you should go."

Finn was more than happy to oblige, to stay around now would only make things worse on himself and at least he had tried. "Ok, it was good to see you Rach, good luck with everything. Er, bye Quinn."

Quinn didn't reply, just kept staring at Rachel, her eyes pleading with the other girl to let her go, let her find somewhere to cry her heart out by herself away from prying eyes.

Once Finn had gone Rachel very softly said, "It's not what you think. What you saw, it's not what you think."

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Quinn, genuinely puzzled as to what Rachel was referring to.

"When you came into the apartment and saw me and Finn hugging, it's not what you think," Rachel explained.

"How could it not-"

"No let me finish," Rachel stopped her. "Please." Once Rachel was sure that Quinn wasn't going to interrupt again she continued, "We were saying goodbye, as in forever goodbye."

"Goodbye?" Quinn couldn't quite grasp what Rachel was telling her. Her and Finn were saying goodbye? So then they weren't- "You guys aren't back together?"

"No," Rachel laughed through the tears that had somehow started to form in her own eyes. "No we're not and we're never going to be, I don't love him Quinn, not anymore."

Quinn's heart started to race, Finn and Rachel weren't together again, Rachel was still very much single and now maybe, just maybe...

"Do you want to come upstairs?" Rachel asked her. "I'd like to hear more about this thing where you said you loved me."

Quinn blushed and pulled her coat tighter around her. "You're not gonna say you hate me and we shouldn't be friends?"

Rachel smiled that same smile she gave Quinn whenever she walked into her dressing room with a bouquet of roses - _the roses! _more signs that Rachel never realised before, friends give each other roses all the time right? right? - and said to the blonde, "I would never say that to you Quinn, do you not understand how much you mean to me?"

Quinn smiled brightly at Rachel as she took the hand that was offered to her and followed Rachel back up to her apartment. They had a hell of a lot to talk about.

.


End file.
